Page 37 of The Protégé

“You aredefinitelynot like most guys.”

I was about to ask her to elaborate when her phone rang.

She brought the plates to the kitchen table. “Can you grab the mugs? Be careful. They’re hot.” Then she answered her phone. “Hi, Mom.” She smiled at me, gestured for me to sit, held up a finger,and walked to the family room, speaking in English and Spanish, which I understood.

“No te preocupes,Mamá. Tengo suficiente dinero,”Elena said with a laugh. “I’m fine. There’s nothing to worry about.”

Her mom was worried she didn’t have enough food to eat.

“What? You didn’t give them your bank information over the phone, did you?” A pause, then she sighed. “Good. Be wary of scammers.”

She went silent for a moment, listening to her mother.

“If you don’t recognize the number, don’t pick up. Okay, have fun on your trip to Martha’s Vineyard. You deserve it. I’ll see you when you get back. Also, I have enough dandelions. Don’t give me anymore.”

Elena walked back looking annoyed. “I swear, the government needs to do something about fraudulent calls. It freaks people out. Especially those who are prone to trust others.”

“What would you do to those scammers?”

Fire flashed in her eyes. “Scam them. Call them out. Flip the rug and see who’s really hiding under there. I used to work with a girl who worked in the police department. She used to get these calls all the time. People are constantly being scammed. What could they do about a scammer in another country? This was beyond them. Makes me angry and sick.” She blew out a frustrated breath, and I could feel the frustration leave her. “Anyway, ready to eat?”

There it was. That easy switch from anxious to calm. How did she do that?

She flicked off the irritation as if it were a little breadcrumb that had fallen into her clothes.

When she sat down, I asked, “So what were you investigating?”

She bit into her sandwich, chewed, and considered me. “Are you sure you want to know?

I want to know everything about you.

“Yes.” I bit into the turkey sandwich, and my taste buds swooned. Though the turkey sandwich was simple, the flavor it produced satisfied me more than anything I ever had. More than those expensive appetizers or meals made by award-winning chefsmy parents used to hire.

But I knew it was the company that made everything taste better. Being with her simplified my day, allowing me to justrelax. It had always been hard for me to let go and just be, but with her, it was easy.

She placed her sandwich down and sipped her tea.

“One of my mom’s friends died a few months ago. It was ruled a suicide. The life insurance wouldn’t pay until a year after his death. So they didn’t have enough money to pay for the funeral costs. The church helped raise money to help the family. But that’s not the suspicious thing.” She sat her teacup down and looked at me. “Apparently, he took out a loan and another life insurance policy from a different company that the family didn’t know about.”

“How did you figure this out?”

“He received several threatening phone calls to pay up. The wife had checked his phone’s voicemail. There were hundreds of horrific messages blackmailing him. I heard some of them.”

“You thinkthe harassment pushed him to suicide?”

Her eyes brightened. “Yes! But the question is why? If he dies, they wouldn’t get their loan payment, right?” She sipped her tea again, thinking. “I’ve been trying to track down the insurance company. But the name listed on his policy is no longer in business.”

I loved watching her in contemplation. The gleam in her eyes. The twitch of her temple, the gentle tapping of her index finger on the side of the cup. But I couldn’t steer my eyes away from the slight pout of her luscious lips. I wanted a taste of them.

I grabbed my teacup and glanced at the bag of dried tea leaves. “Do you want to hear my take?”

“Please.” She watched me intently. “I’m at a dead end.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“Because I want to know the truth. The family deserves that.”

“But the truth cost you your job, Elena.”

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